Jay Fernando
Book Review
March 18th
A Different Kind of Boy
Daniel Mont
As parents, all
we hope for is that our kids become healthy, happy, and successful. A Different Kind of Boy is a memoir
written by Daniel Mont. This memoir takes the reader on a journey through the
eyes of Daniel, as well as a young boy named Alex, who was born with autism.
Alex’s mother endured a difficult delivery, with many complications. The doctor
was force to quickly remove Alex from his mother, causing damage to his left
arm. Alex was prescribed medication to help heal his left arm, as a result the
medications contributed to the development of autism. Autism is a mental
condition that is present from early childhood. It can cause children to have
difficulty in communicating and forming relationships with other people as well
as difficulties using language and abstract concepts (Google). Alex had
difficulty communicating with others in addition to staying focused. Daniel
Mont describes the journey he and his wife endured while raising a child with
autism. This memoir was touching as it really grasped my attention. It was eye
opening to see the barriers and frustrations Daniel and Nanette had to overcome
in order to raise Alex.
Alex
was brought into this world in October of 1987. With a minor complication in
his birth Alex appeared to be a healthy baby boy. The medication the doctor
prescribed Alex for his left arm healed it back to normal, although there were
unexpected side affects. It was believed that this medication as well as a
complication during birth caused Alex to develop autism. Daniel and Nanette did
not know that their son had autism, they believed Alex exhibited normal
patterns of behavior until they began to focus more closely on the specific
behaviors Alex performed.
As
each day passed Alex’s parents were intrigued with his behavior, but were still
unaware of his autism. They noticed his passion for books and spinning objects.
Each day Daniel would read books to Alex for hours on end, to a point where it
got to much. Alex obsessions with books became too much for his parents as a
result, they had to hide the books from him. When Alex was not occupied reading
books he was fascinated with objects that could spin. He would grab anything he
could get his little hands on and throw them on the ground to see if it would
spin. He could spend hours being consumed by the spinning object.
Daniel
and Nanette wondered if all children were like Alex always wanting to read or
intrigued by other items, although what really worried them was Alex’s
concentration. Alex would exhibit no feelings when taking part in an activity
he enjoyed. Alex could sit there motionless as well as emotionless as his eyes
were fixated on what he was looking at. If what he was concentrating on was
taken away he would cry out, however a smile would never arise on his face.
It
became clear to Daniel and Nanette that Alex was a special child. He had trouble playing and having fun with others.
Alex became isolated from groups of children playing together, due to the fact
that his peers found it difficult to play with him, although Alex was satisfied
playing with himself. The only time when Alex would express his emotions is
when people would attempt to play with him. During these times he would scream
in frustration and want to be alone. As Daniel and Nanette watched it was
heartbreaking to them, as they could not understand why their son didn't enjoy
playing with others. They always blamed themselves, their questions were always
left unanswered until they brought Alex to see a specialist.
After seeing the specialist Alex’s
behaviors became clear to Daniel and Nanette. They found a sense of relief
knowing it was not their parenting that caused Alex to act that way, and were
able to focus their attention on Alex to seek assistance for his autism. They
felt as if it was more beneficial for Alex to go to a school that had an
integrated classroom. Having a school that has structure really helped Alex
grow as a child. A school that is integrated meant that Alex classrooms would
be evenly split with children that are not diagnosed with a disability, and
ones that are. This removed concerns with Daniel and Nanette about Alex not
being exposed to a typical school.
Even
though Alex struggled with his social skills at school his teachers were very
confident that eventually he would catch up. The neat thing about autism is
that Alex may lack social skills but is brilliantly gifted in school,
especially in math. He was known as a celebrity as he would help the older kids
with their math problems on the bus. It became clear to Daniel and Nanette that
they had a mathematical genius for a child.
As
each year went by Alex kept developing his social skills as well as he kept
developing his knowledge. Grade five quickly approached and his teachers were
pleased with his progresses. They were a bit worry about his ability to
concentrate although he had been well integrated with the other students that
they believed it to be a minor set back.
This
memoir is a very touching and heartbreaking story to read. I felt very engaged
into the memoir and learned a lot about autistic children. This memoir has
opened my eyes to the different situation parents are faced with raising a
child with autism. Daniel does a great job in his memoir describing the positive
as well as the struggles when dealing with Alex. I highly recommend this book
to others because how touching a memoir this is, but also the obstacles Alex
had to overcome. This memoir is fun and interesting to read, and keeps pulling the
reader back for more.
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